Foot imprinting device



Sept. 30, 1958 w. M. SCHOLL FOOT IMPRINTING DEVICE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed May 14, 1956 @ZEZZZQF MZZM/V VKSZWZL w. M. scHoLL FOOT IMPRINTINGDEVICE Sept. 30,1958

3 Sheets-Sheet -2 Filed May 14, 1956 Max m/1 504 041,

Sept. 30, 1958 w. M. SCHOLL I 3,

FOOT IMPRINTING DEVICE Filed May 14, 1956 v 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 II II It wzggg United States Patent "6) FOOT IMPRINTJNGDEVICE William M. Scholl,Chicago, Ill. Application. May 14, 1956, Serial No. 584,536 6' Claims.cl.i4'r--"4 This invention relates: to 'improve'ments in afootimprinting device, andmore'particularly. to a devicewhiglrily'desirable for use in a shoe: store, doctors. and chiropodists offices,laboratories,hospitals; andother locations wherein it may bedesi-rableto"takes-aminked imprint of.

formerly known devices included inking:rolls:"around which an imprintingcurtain was wound;v the curtain being extendab'le over anzimprrintingiplatform: However, in all instances of whieh l' amaware theserformerlyknown deviceswere objeotionab'ly-expensive to manufacture in that theplatform and roll housirigzwere'ifabricated of a numberofpiecesvofmaterial.- Also;.devices of this kind heretofore known werenot-.asueflici'ent -a's dersired'in applyinga smooth arid sufiicientcoating oflink on the imprinting curtain, and the imprinting. curtaincould not'be manipulated with the: f-acility and-rapidity that isdesired.

With the foregoingin rnind,it is animportantobject of theinstantinvention toprovide a. handy, .ponta'ble: and

sanitary foot imprinting device,: wherein:theviinprinting.

or impression platform and housing-ion the irikingr-roll are cast as aunit'in onessingleipiece from=anyssiiitalile moldable material. I

Another object of the inventioneresides irrthez'p'iovh sion of a footimprintingdeviceiliavirrgt an's-impression".

platform and a housing for'an*inking' rollzwithrant printing curtain'extendable over therplatform equipped' with simple overcentermeans foractuatingzthc curtain.

to its extended or to its contractedposition.

It is also -afeature ofthis-invention tol provideiaz-foot imprintingdevice having: awhig'hly efiicientvinleingtrollof novel constructionWhichcontains: thesupplywofrinls' therein andevenly distributes inkover:an'impr'inting curtain wound around the .roll';

It is also an object of thisiinvention:toeprovide ai fo'otimprintingdevice havingvan inkingtroll which may-readily be filled with inkwithout removin'git:f-romithe device;

Still a furtherobjectof the invention resides Till the provision of 'afoot imprintingsdevicecontaining?an ink ing roller with a curtain .woundtherea'round, saidi 'cur tain being extendable. over tin-impressionplatformfdur ing use, andtthe arrangement-beingsuchrthatiink is'sonly'applied to the-curtain during -r'novement-to and 'froin the extendedposition. Y

Still afurther objectvof the-instant invention-resides in the provisionof a foot imprinting;- device: having an" inking roller with animprinting'curtain WOUIld:'thBIC'-' around, the roller beingso-constructed -as-- to insure an even and relatively thin application.of ink to the undersurface of thecurtatin-forc-achimprinting:operation.-

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Patented Sept. 30, 1958 2L Alsoa'feature ofthe inventionresides'in theprovision of a foot imprinting device of exceedingly simple andeconomical construction andwhich is very rapid in use;

While some of the more salient-features, characteristics.

and advantages -of the instant invention have been above pointed out,others will become apparent from the following disclosures, taken in'conjunctionwith the accompanyin'g drawings, in which Figured is. a topplan'view of a foot imprinting device :en'rbodying principles of theinstant invention;

Figure 2 is: an enlargedfragmentary vertical sectional view takensubstantially as indicated by the line -II-II of Fig. l, lookinginthe-direction ofthe arrows, and showing-the imprintingiourtain in fullyextended. positionv ready 'for use;

Figure 31 is a view similar in character to Fig; 2, but

, illustrating the imprinting curtain in retracted position;

Figure 4-isa topaplanviewvof the inking roller, without the curtainthereon, showing the same with. parts broken-away to illustratetheiparts thereben'eath;

Figure 5 is an: enlargedtransverse vertical sectional viewtaken-substantially as indicated by line VV of- Fig. 4; illustrating theinking roller core;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional'view throughv the casing with theinking roller: removed to illu-strate'the end' support for the-rolleratone side of the casing;

Figure 7 is'a transverse sectional View, enlarged, through the inkingrollerand taken substantially. as indicated by the line VII-VII 'of Fig.4;

Figure 8:is=a transverse sectional viewthrough an:inlc-- ing;roller ofslightly-diflerent construction; with theimprintin'ggcurtainremoved; and

Figure 9 I is a plan. "view, similar inclraracter to Fig; 4; with partsbroken away toillustrate structure there=- beneath ofnanink'ing roll :ofstill dilferent'construction.

Asshown onathe drawings:

Inwthe illustrated. embodiment of this-invention there: is shown a footimprinting device :embodying :animpresasion or imprinting, platform 1having: reinforcing ribs 2 on:the:underside-thereof, asrseen 'best'inFig's. 2 andr3-5 This platform :1 is providedi'with a shallow depressionlllrltS upperface: outlinedby. a--bounding-wall3. As seen in Fig. .1}.thewall 3-at one point is notchedrasat 4 to= facilitate-rcmovalof thetopmost one 'ofazstack of impression cards 5 (Figs. land 3) positionedinthere- Also, with re-ference to Fig; 1,.

cessof the platform 1. it will-be seen-that at one end of the platform,an upstandingzheel seat: 61 is provided to aid in properly poshtioning-the foot of the patient over the platform 1.

Along, one side of'the platform is an 't1pstanding=hous-- ingj7for-theinking'roller and imprinting curtain, when" Adjacent the top. ofthe insides: reach 'ofthewall 3 an elongated slot 8 is provided'in the:latter is not in use.

thehousingthrough' whichxthe imprinting curtain'may be extended andretracted. Further, the housing is open" at the bottom, anda'ccess'tothe interior of thehousing may be had through such 'bottomopening,.which.1naybe covered by a removable plate 9 held iniplace byv abolt or screws10 at eachend'thereof; each of which bolts may engagein aninternallythreaded boss 11 integral withthe end wall of the-housing, asseen'inFig. 6.-

With the exception ofthe plate*9 and bolts 10,- all 0f" thestructure-above describe'dds preferably cast or mold ed in one singlepiece. The platform 1- andhousing 7 may be molded as a single unit fromany suitable material, such-as a thermosetting phenolic condensationproduct.

Mounted 'forrotation'within the housing '7 is an inkin 4 roll generallyindicatedby numeraLlZ, and'anrimprinting curtain-13 has one end thereofaffixed to the roll as indicated at14-,.and the opposite: end providedwith -a:

marginal loop 1'5 and also witha'looped handle 16:101?

manipulating the curtain. This curtain may wellbe made of relativelythin highly resilient rubber, or other suitable material. Extendingthrough the marginal loop or hem is the bight 17 of a U-shaped actuatingmember in the form of a rod, the legs 1818 of which are outturned attheir extremities and hinged or pivoted to opposite ends of the wall 3on the impression platform 1, by suitable stirrups 1919 or theequivalent, as seen in Fig. 1.

The inking roll 12, as seen best in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5, includes a core20 of thermosetting plastic, metal, or any other suitably rigid andimpervious material. An end cap 21 is secured inside each end of thecore 20 to thereby form a hollow receptacle. Each end cap has welded orequivalently secured to the outer surface thereof a base 22 from which afixed stub shaft 23 projects upon which stub shaft the roll may rotate.A series of relatively minute outlet apertures 24 are provided in theupper portion of the roll as seen in Figs. 4 and .5, and in theillustrated instance there are three rows of such apertures with theapertures in adjacent rows staggered in relationship. Ink from the rollmay seep through these apertures when they are disposed below thehorizontal. The core 20 is provided in the bottom portion near an endthereof with an apertured filling boss 25 normally plugged by a stopperor bolt 26, and the filling boss is preferably disposed diametrallyopposite the outlet apertures. Around the core member is a sleeve 27which is preferably of loosely woven fabric, this sleeve being merely aspacer to keep an outer sleeve 28 of wicking material, such as felttreated to have good wicking action, away from direct contact with thecore tube over the apertures, so as to avoid possible plugging of theapertures by fibers from the wicking material. An external covering 29of relatively thin and smooth porous fabric may be provided over thewicking material 28 if deemed necessary, and the aforesaid imprintingcurtain 13 is wound outside of the ink distributor sleeve 29. Of course,all sleeves are provided with a suitable aperture to permit access tothe plug 26 for the filling port of the core member.

With reference to Fig. 7 it will be seen that at one end thereof,outside the respective end cap'21 in the core 20, the roll is providedwith a coiled spring 30, the inner end of which is secured to the stubshaft 23, and the outer end of which is provided with a loop 31.

At each end of the housing 7 an upstanding mounting bracket 32 issecured to the housing wall in any suitable manner. The mounting bracketis provided with a suitable socket 33 for reception of the stub shaft 23at one end of the roll, and the bracket 32 illustrated in Fig. 6 is forthe stub shaft at the spring end of the roll. It is merely necessary toinsert the stub shaft in the socket 32, and place the loop 31 of thespring over a projecting pin 34. When so mounted, the roll will functionin the manner of the commonly known window shade, the spring tending tomaintain the roll in position with the imprinting curtain wound up.

Also journaled in a suitable socket 35 on each end plate 32 in aposition adjacent the slot 8 in the housing wall is a guide roller 36over which the imprinting curtain must travel from the roll to the slot.

In operation, the instantinvention is extremely simple and positive. Inorder to take an imprint of a patients foot, it is simply necessary tograsp the finger loop 16 on the curtain 13, and pivot the U-shapedsupporting rod 1718 from the position seen in Fig. 3 to the positionseen in Fig. 2 so the curtain is extended over. the platform 1. It willbe noted that no holding means are necessary to maintain the curtain inposition to take an imprint, because the bight 17 of the curtain controlrod is over center, in that the axis extends beyond a plane through theaxis of the pivoted leg ends and the axis of the guide roller 36. Inorder to move the curtain to retracted position it is simplynecessary'to flip up the end of the curtain from the position seen inFig. 2, and the spring in the inking roll will retract the curtain.

Now it will be noted that the ink outlet apertures 24 in the core of theinking roll are disposed upwardly or on the top of the roll both whenthe curtain is in retracted position and when the curtain is in extendedposition. The curtain and the roll are sized relatively to each other soone or more full revolutions of the inking roll occurs each time thecurtain is moved from one position to the other. In the illustratedinstance one full revolution of the inking roll is suflicient forextension of'the curtain. During the extending operation and during theretracting operation, the ink outlet apertures are distributing ink onthe wicking sleeve for a part of the time. That is sufiicient tomaintain the wicking sleeve sufficiently moist to transmit an even filmof ink to the underside of the imprint curtain. When it is desired toreplenish the ink supply in the inking roll, it is a simple expedient toremove the plate 9, and the plug 26 of the filling port, and fill theroll core slightly less than half full in most cases. Such a supply ofink will last for a considerable length of time.

In taking an imprint of the foot, it is a simple expedient to extend'thecurtain as above explained, and then the patient places his foot uponthe inked curtain 13. The curtain flexes downwardly and an impression ofthe foot is taken on the uppermost one of the cards 5. Immediately afterthe taking of the imprint, the curtain is slipped back into retractedposition, and the topmost card bearing an accurate imprint removed fromthe platform recess. The entire device is easily portable, may be placedin substantially any desired location on a flat surface, and is not onlyeconomical but pleasing in appearance and highly sanitary.

In Fig. 8 I have disclosed a slightly different form of inking rollwhich, comprises the same core'20 with the outlet apertures 24 thereinas above described. In this instance, however, the core is covered by asleeve 37 of wicking material in the form of porous foam latex throughwhich the ink will pass, and this sleeve in turn is preferably coveredby distributing sleeve 38 of the same character as the aforesaid sleeve29. The inking roller shown in Fig. 8 may be more desirable for use withcertain types of ink than the roller of Figs. 4, 5 and 7, dependingsomewhat upon the viscosities of the Various inks that may be used.

In Fig. 9 I have illustrated a still different construction for theinking roll wherein the same core member is utilized as above-described,and wherein the same wicking sleeve 28 with a distributing cover 29 asdecribed in connection with Figs. 4, 5 and 7 are also utitilezd.However, in this instance, spaced bands "39 of wicking material,preferably of lesser thickness than the sleeve 28, are disposed aroundthe core member between the apertures 24. These bands 39 adequatelyspace the wicking sleeve 28 from the core member, and the bands beingalso of wicking material will effect lateral distribution of the ink sothat there will be no regions devoid of ink in the wicking sleeve 28.The operation of this inking roll is the same as those above described,and again this roll may. be more desirable than the others, dependingupon the viscosities of the various inks.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that I have provided a novel andhighly efiicient foot imprinting device embodying a molded one-piecestructure including both an impression platform and a housing for theinking roll and imprinting curtain when not in use, and a structurehighly simple and efiicient in operation, particularly in moving theimprinting curtain from extended to retracted position and vice versa,and a structure in which the right amount of ink evenly distributed foran im pression occurs at each operation.

It will be understood that modifications and variations may be effectedwithout departing from the scope of the novel concepts of the presentinvention.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a foot imprinting device, an impression platform, a housingadjacent one side of said platform, a spring urged inking roll in saidhousing, an imprinting curtain on said roll, and a U-shaped rod havingits legs hinged to the ends of said platform and the bight connected tosaid curtain.

2. In a foot imprinting device, an impression platform, a housingadjacent one side of said platform, a spring urged inking roll in saidhousing, an imprinting curtain on said roll, a U-shaped rod having itslegs hinged to the ends of said platform and the bight connected to saidcurtain, and a guide roll over which said curtain moves, and said bightbeing over center with respect to a plane through the axes of the leghinges and said guide roll whensaid curtain is extended over saidplatform.

3. In a foot imprinting device, an impression platform, a housing alongone side of said platform, a hollow inking roll in said housing, saidroll holding a supply of ink therein with outlet apertures in the topregion only thereof, an imprinting curtain around said roll andextendable over said platform, and said roll being sized to turn onefull revolution while said curtain is being extended whereby said outletapertures are at the top of the roll except when said curtain is beingextended or retracted.

4. In a foot imprinting device, an impression platform, a housing alongone side of said platform, a hollow inking roll in said housing, saidroll holding a supply of ink therein with outlet apertures in the topregion only thereof, an imprinting curtain around said roll and extend-6 able over said platform, said roll being sized to turn one fullrevolution while said curtain is being extended whereby said outletapertures are at the top of the roll except when said curtain is beingextended or retracted, said inking roll having a filling opening thereinopposite said apertures, and a removable plug for said opening.

5. In a foot imprinting'device, an impression plat form, a housing alongone side of said platform, a hollow inking roll in said housing, saidroll holding a supply of ink therein with outlet apertures in the topregion only thereof, an imprinting curtain around said roll andextendable over said platform, said roll and curtain being relativelysized so that said apertures are at the top of the roll when saidcurtain is both retracted and extended.

6. In a foot imprinting device, an impression platform, a housing alongone side of said platform, a hollow inking roll in said housing, saidroll comprising an ink containing core having outlet apertures spacedtherealong, spaced bands of wicking material around said core betweensaid apertures, a sleeve of wicking material over said bands, and animprinting curtain wound on said roll.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

